Several wounded in shooting in German city; gunman dead

A lone gunman wounded several people at a lecture hall in the southwestern German city of Heidelberg on Monday, police said.

Police said in a brief statement that the perpetrator was dead, but didn't give details of how that happened. They had earlier asked people on Twitter to avoid the Neuenheimer Feld area of Heidelberg, where the city’s university campus is located.

Police didn't specify how many people were wounded, or how seriously. The university’s press office declined to give any details on the shooting and referred all inquiries to police.


German news agency dpa cited unidentified security sources as saying that the gunman killed himself. It also reported, without citing sources, that the gunman is believed to have been a student himself, and that security officials say initial indications are that he didn't have any political or religious motive.

Police said the weapon used in the shooting was a long-barreled firearm.

Heidelberg is located south of Frankfurt and has about 160,000 inhabitants. Its university is one of Germany's best-known.